Nielsen: Post–World Cup Soccer Audiences Surge Among Young Viewers
Domestic and European leagues have seen post-tournament audience bumps.
Nielsen's latest research reveals a significant surge in U.S. television audiences for soccer following the conclusion of the 2026 FIFA men's World Cup. According to the findings, exclusive to the Front Office Sports Tuned In summit, soccer viewership has increased among two of the most sought-after demographics for advertisers: men aged 18-34 and adults aged 18-34.
Specifically, MLS matches on Fox and FS1 have seen a 55% rise in viewership among men 18-34 and a 29% increase among adults 18-34, compared to pre-tournament regular-season matches. This data does not include MLS coverage on Apple TV, which was made available this year through a separate streaming paywall. For England's Premier League on NBC and the USA Network, viewership has also increased by 30% among adults 18-34, including Spanish broadcasts.
LaLiga's audiences on ESPN platforms have risen by 60% among adults 18-34 and increased by 42% year over year across all English- and Spanish-language broadcasts. Overall, Nielsen's Fan Insights data shows that the number of U.S. residents identifying as soccer fans has grown from 66.8 million in July 2025 to 75.2 million in July 2026, representing a 13% increase.
Since 2022, U.S. soccer fandom has grown by 27%, adding 16 million fans, while MLS fandom has increased by 28%, or 11.7 million fans. Nielsen's global head of sports, Seth Ladetsky, stated that the data indicates "fandom is not only reaching record highs, but it is also expanding rapidly among younger, diverse audiences and carrying over into major domestic and international leagues."
The heightened interest in soccer is not surprising, given the record viewership during the World Cup, with Fox experiencing a 116% boost in viewership compared to 2022 (7.74 million viewers) and Spanish-language coverage on Telemundo surging 143% to an average of 6.3 million viewers. The final match between Spain and Argentina drew an average of 66.4 million viewers, making it the most-watched soccer match in U.S. history and the largest audience on American television since Super Bowl LX.
Following the tournament, leagues such as MLS launched extensive marketing campaigns to capitalize on the newfound fan interest, with ticket and merchandise sales experiencing notable boosts in teams like the Philadelphia Union and Nashville SC.
Written by urgent.news from Front Office Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
